There are no open bore wells in the city.The bore wells were either attached to hand pumps or connected to motors. The Corporation had not left open any bore well in the city, he maintained.
Mr. Ponnusamy said that the bore wells the Corporation had sunk were around six inches in diameter, which were too small to pose danger to children or adults.
Even as the Commissioner offered his explanations, Ward 28 Councillor S.R. Arjunan closed three unused bore wells in his ward in Saravanampatty. He told The Hindu that he had filled earth in the bore wells near E.B. Colony Main Road, Sivasakthi Nagar and Anna Nagar.
He had employed earthmovers to close the wells.
Mr. Arjunan said that the then Saravanampatti Town Panchayat had dug the bore wells but had not put them to use. They should be at least five years old.
On Monday he would take up the work to close the remaining open bore wells in his ward.
He said he was closing the bore wells following a communication from Chief Minister Jayalalithaa to her party men. The Public Works Department Minister K.V. Ramalingam had also issued a similar appeal.
The Councillor said that apart from filling earth, he would also seal them with concrete so that the earth in due course of time due to contraction did not leave a pit at the mouth of the closed wells.
Sources said that the convention in this part of the country is to place casing pipes to prevent earth from filling the dug well. The same would also prevent fall.
They also said that as far as wider width bore wells, usually dug for industries, were concerned, the owners of the land/ premises were the wells were should take adequate precautionary measures like covering the well.
They should also ensure that children did not move close to the wells.
